12 July 2024

I have recently treated several soft toy Teddies who have been loved and cuddled by their owners since they (the owners) were small.
Sooty was remarkably well preserved, and his needs were mostly sartorial. Having cleaned, conditioned and brushed him, I underlined and patched his dungarees, added some stuffing and mended a few holes. I also refilled and fixed a torn bags of weight beads that I found inside him, and Sooty was very pleased that he could sit much more comfortably afterwards.

20-year-old Cream Teddy also had a good clean (so as to live up to his name). I underlined his threadbare skin and mended all the holes, while keeping his distinctive nose and navel just as his owner liked them.

The oldest of the three patients, Teddy, was quite surprised at how bright his fur became after I cleaned and conditioned him. He left the Hospital much bouncier than before thanks to a full re-stuffing, and was very relieved that the mending of his holes proved quite painless.

6 July

Sheepskin teddies are notoriously hard to restore, so I had my work cut out when Teddy was admitted to  Sasha's Teddy Bear Hospital last month - all the more so as his head and one paw were no longer attached to his body. Teddy's treatment took a long time, but I believe the results met with his and his owners' approval. Wearing his new bow tie, Teddy was finally able to relax in an easy chair while waiting to be discharged.

Another patient who underwent quite a transformation was Bunny. After a good clean, he was treated to a full re-stuffing and extensive repairs to his threabare pjs, complete with a lace collar! Bunny was overjoyed with the care he received, and his owner shared his feelings.


One of my most interesting patients last month, another Teddy, had been very well cared for and kitted out by his owner. He was, however, in need of extra stuffing and a new pair of trousers, and I was happy to help.

18 June

The latest patient at my Hospital was 40-year-old Red Ted, who had been his owner's best friend since childhood. Over the years he lost most of his stuffing, but I soon put that right. I also cleaned him and mended all his holes - much to his owner's delight.

Before Red Ted, I had a rare human patient - a baby doll, whose textile body had become rather worn and needed renovating, inside and out.

Another recent patient was lovely Piggy. His main concern was his legs, weak on account of the loss of stuffing - something I was able to remedy fairly easily. Pigs are of course renowned for their cleanliness, so Piggy welcomed a good clean, and he was very pleased to have some of his stitching reinforced.

10 June

I have mixed feelings when a patient I treated before returns to Sasha's Teddy Bear Hospital. It is always nice to see them again but I also ask myself whether I did enough to make sure they stayed healthy.

And so it was with Ron, the only rhino I have ever treated. To be fair, it has been a while since saw him last, and his active lifestyle makes repeat visits to A&E practically inevitable. This time, he had some wounds on his chest and feet tended to, the tip of his horn repaired and his tail rebuilt. As soon as surgery was finished, Ron trotted off to join his owners on another exciting expedition.

29 May

70 plus Teddy was not looking his best when admitted to Hospital earlier this month, and was in dire need of major life-saving surgery. First I gave him a good clean, followed by a full re-stuffing. I mended all the holes in his skin by underlining it with a new fabric, restored his ears and limbs, and gave him nice new paw pads. I re-embroidered his nose and smile, gave him new glass eyes of the kind he originally had, and replaced the old broken growler with a new one. After surgery Teddy looked years younger, and his owner was particularly pleased that he "kept his kind and reassuring face" in the process.

27 May

I do not recall ever having a doctor as a patient at Sasha's Teddy Bear Hospital, so Dr. Swindale, aged 40+, may well have been the first. The doctor had a nasty tear in his neck, which required major surgery, and was also very pleased to recover his original colour when washed. Years ago, Dr. Swindale was a present from the future husband to his future wife, and a gift voucher for his treatment was also his Christmas present to her! 

Another bear, Ted, came to the Hospital with his good friend Rex, and it was the latter who needed more attention. I cleaned and re-stuffed both of them, mended the holes in Rex's coat, and salvaged the weight beads in his tummy, sewing them into a pouch before putting them back. I also made Rex a nice satin collar with a tiny bell.

Earlier, I treated a most distinctive looking bear, who had red arms and feet and a blue back! After waiting here patiently for his turn for several months, he had his felt nose and his smile re-created, and all his weak seams thoroughly re-stitched. I also gave him some new stuffing, so he was able to sit properly - which made him really happy.

25 May

Regular readers will know that I have had a fair share of rabbits as patients at my Hospital over the years. Two more were treated this month. One on the left, a well preserved 30 year old called Bunny, came with a crick in the neck after earlier repairs. I gave her some extra stuffing and reattached her head so that she was able to face forward rather than sideways. The younger one on the right, also called Bunny, had a neck injury too. It was imperative for his treament to be carried out very quickly, as his young owner needed Bunny to go to sleep. Fortunately, it did not take long to mend the hole in his neck, so he was reunited with his owner in no time.

15 May

The most recent patient at Sasha's Teddy Bear Hospital, Piggy, is only 20 years old, but so much loved and so much repaired over the years that treating him was quite a challenge and took a while. The best part was restoring his ears (which have heavy beads in them!), and Piggy's owner was overjoyed to see them again as she remembered from 10 years before.

In contrast, young Pippy the Piplup Pokemon, did not have to stay long at the Hospital. After a good gentle clean, a complete re-stuffing and some tidying up of his stitching he was ready to rejoin his owner - and off they flew to Spain, promising to send me a postcard from there.

Before them, I treated 65-year-old Ted, who was remarkably well preserved for his age. However, he needed some attention to his facial features, as his eyes had become rather wobbly, while his nose and smile were nearly gone, and his ears semi-detached. The treatment went well, and Ted returned home in an excellent mood.

10 May

It has been quite a while since I made any new Teddies, but now at long last the first one of 2024 is here. Please welcome Edwyn, the child minder Teddy. He was made to order, and in his adoptive family he will be looking after a little girl. I can say hand on heart that Edwyn's personality makes him eminently suitable for his role. He is kind and adores children, he can be fun to be with, but at the same time he takes his responsibilities extremely seriously.

9 May

I have had a wonderful experience teaching another group of very talented students to make traditional Teddy Bears. The Workshop was held in Henley-on-Thames, at the world famous Asquith's Bearpawium, and was again organised by Rachel, the one and only Director of Bears! The last of the four sessions ended last night. Every single Teddy was personally assessed by Otto Asquith the Model Bear, and all passed with flying colours. There followed a little celebration with some nice Prosecco for the teacher, the students and the organiser, and a photo session for Otto and the Teddies.

5 May

Another bear, aged 50+, was discharged from Sasha's Teddy Bear Hospital today, having received new eyes, nose and smile. The bear also had a good clean, a complete re-stuffing, and had all his holes mended and his ears returned to their original shape.

Two other recent patients were admitted after falling prey to dogs. While Gideon Duck only needed to have his feet restored and his cap mended, Big Ted's injuries were much worse.  Not only did he lose all his stuffing and large chunks of fur, but his whole skin became alsmost see-through. After extensive surgery, however, 30-year-old Ted was in rude health again, much to the delight of his owner.